First American Empire
Of the three empires in American history, the longest standing was the very first, existing for over a thousand years, between 3071-4089. It was marked by military might not seen in its history and featured America's so called Golden Age, the Williamite Era, and upon whose end saw the empire end as well. Foundation and the Davidian Era Like its successor states, it was founded in the aftermath of a war, particularly the Khaliseyti Civil War. In the early 3070's, America was embrawled in the middle of the Wars of Order, a terribly ominous period of wars and proxy wars between America and her allies against the New Imperium and its puppet states. The Khaliseyti Civil War was one such conflict, with America supporting the standing confederated government against anarchical rebels cells aided by the Imperium. During the final stages of this two year war, King John II was severely injured while visiting the field, leaving him crippled and less than the strong-standing man he once was. As a result, he abdicated the throne, feeling himself no longer capable of ruling. His young and ambitious son and heir, James, succeeded him, but dropped the title of King of America. He wished to truly form an empire, against the philosophy of his distant predecessor, Edward III, considering its large size and imperialistic past, and besides that, many other nations already referred to America as an empire by that point. He took the title American Emperor and formed the first empire, further supported by the fact that he added Augustus to his regnal name, a call back to Ancient Rome when emperors received the name Augustus as a sign of their imperial power, officially being known as James II Augustus. His imperial rule would see the near destruction of the New Imperium until his own death in battle. The Alexandrian Era Under the grandson of James, Alexander I, imperial power was further expanded. In fact, many believed that it was Alexander who put true meaning into the title American Emperor, ''as he, unlike his parents and grandfather, showed a difference in imperial etiquette in all forms of society and politics, from his actual legal power, to the style he was referred to by. This was only more supported by the creation of the Imperial Constitution, a document designed to make clear the balance of power in American society and to display their individual rights. Alongside his two immediate successors, Alexander would also expand the military and geographic size of America during the Third Age of Galactic Exploration that he would begin, more than doubling both, making the empire, for a time, the most powerful country in the known galaxy, undefeated and unstoppable. He would command the empire through more wars than all four of his predecessors combined (including his mother). His reign, as well the three Alexanders that would follow him, would makeup the period known to the galaxy as ''Pax Alexandrini, the Alexandrian Peace. Much of the work that Alexander I had accomplished were more or less undone by his great-grandson, Alexander IV. This Alexander took imperial power to far, looking entirely down upon other powers, having too much of an "America First" foreign policy, and pushing his only allies away. This foolish monarch received his epithet, the Arrogant, as a result of this pride, which would lead to the subsequent fall of the empire. Standing all alone against a large league of enemies, America was overrun and Alexander was deposed and executed in the War of the Red Pride. His only surviving son of the conflict, also Alexander, went into hiding as a slave alongside his family to protect the line. The Great Occupation Following their victory, the simply called Blue Alliance partitioned the now surrendered American Empire into parts, the Ejjithians (unknown descendants of the House of Darupé) taking the vast majority with 80% of the territory. So began the near three hundred-year period known to Americans as the Great Occupation, where the "empire" was occupied and controlled by the Ejjithians and their allies. Under the rule of the Ejjithian God-Kings, an enormous portion of the American population became slaves and were forced to work in the most cruel of conditions, having to build monuments to Ejjithian gods they would much rather spit on amongst many other grueling tasks. American slaves were bought and sold in huge, backwater markets where wealthy merchants and lords from across the known galaxy came to buy a part of the so-called "American specimen." Occasionally, a slave could be freed from their master or mistress if Fate was kind to them, and by social law, all of their children and spouses were freed as well. But on the rare occasion this did happen, they were still forced to live the most hideous of lives. One day, a slave named Alexander, a direct (albeit hidden) descendant of Alexander IV lead a revolution against their overlords. He used his miraculous gifts to defeat the Ejjithians time and again, until their rule collapsed. This victory was only made easier with the faulty and overly-ambitious reign of Thesiod XII, who was marred with oversights and false truths in his mind that lead to many blunders that saw his regime fall. The Mosesh Era Following the successful rebellion, Alexander is proclaimed Alexander V due to his ancestry as the new emperor, and adds Moses to his name after being called such so many times after he freed the slaves and lead America to freedom once. His first objective afterward was the freedom of the other American territories under the control of other nation of the Blue Alliance, who have begun to invade the recently freed territories to avenge their Ejjithians allies. Even with the worst of odds, America pulls through to victory and expels the occupiers. With the empire reunited, Alexander V would spend the remainder of his reign rebuilding America's long lost strength and reestablishing prominence on the galactic stage. With some difficulty, the economy manages to prosper and the people resettled. Alexander would also command troops as part of the alliance known as the Great Enterprise to overthrow the usurper Augustine, Proman Emperor during the Promese-American War, which would in the end succeedm, but with the House of Spheorza as the rulers of the Proman Empire, and in the First and Second Ayggiyan Wars against Praxis I. Following his death, Alexander is succeeded by his grandson Francis I. The innovative Francis leads America into a new technological revolution as well as watchful peace with the Spheorzas, particularly with his on-and-off rival and friend Ondrad IV, Proman Emperor. Also during his reign, he oversees the end of America's reconstruction and pursues war in a handful of dynastic conflicts, including the Urman Civil War, which would see the crippling of his eldest son and heir Crown Prince Francis, as well as the Second Urman War, where his grandson Nicholas was conquer Nangalor after personally defeating the Urman ruler, Eolon. Following his own death, the crown prince, derivitably known as the Francis the Halfman, rules for a time, overseeing the Third Ayggiyan War and the prosper of the American people in the aftermath of Urman War II. The Nicholaen Era When Francis II dies, his son, the martially strong, handsome, and witty Prince Nicholas takes his place. His reign marked the day where American control was able to touch every corner of the known galaxy, and the dynastic expansion of the House of Macillium. Following the deaths of his uncle, King Louis of Urmania, Praxis IV of Ayggiya, and Jacal VI of Panthrand, Nicholas adds three more crowns to his name, making five of seven he would gain in his lifetime, growing the empire's power. Through one of his finest hours, Nicholas was able to gain the Proman Throne. When his legendarily incapable rival Ondrad V, saw fit to starve his people, revolt sparked with the Proman Revolution. Nicholas supported the rebels with resources and, when the time was right, military aid in Operation Dropkick, a military campaign to destroy the Proman Empire. Leading the troops himself, in a matter of six days, Nicholas annihilated the Proman forces, culminating in the suicide of Ondrad V and the flight of his house. For 23 days, a republic stood over the Proman worlds only to disolve themselves and elect Nicholas as the new Proman Emperor. After another campaign, he added a final crown, Florrulium, to the fold before his death. When he died, his holdings were divided amongst his children: Catherine, his oldest, received the American Empire and Florrulium; Anthony became Proman Emperor and King of Nangalor; Alexander became the longest reigning Emperor of Ayggiya; Francis became King of Urmania; and Cyrus became King of Panthrand. But all was not well amongst the siblings. Feeling cheated, Francis and Cyrus allied themselves and attempted to overthrow Catherine, only to be deposed and replaced by her. Catherine's reign was peaceful from then on, thanks in part to the strong reigns of Alexander and Anthony, who helped keep galactic peace, the three of them being known as the Big Three. After her demise, she was replaced by naive but stoic only child, James III. James was a strong proponent of a "peace through war" philosophy, and in a series of minor conflicts intended to see it through across the galaxy. His rule also saw the annexation of Florrulium into the empire, being made into an impregnable territory in the east as a bulwark of American power. His son and successor, George I, was even more of a warmonger. He would earn his nickname, the Scourge of Aziria, from his greatest engagement, the bloody six-year long Aziri War, which would see the extinction of America's western rivals. His reign also marked the first major growth in the economy since the Alexandrian Era, as well as major liberal reforms to protectorate and outer territories, where rights for the people were not nearly as fair as in the interior. The Aaronian Era (Georgian Era) The following period saw major demilitarization under Aaron II, alongside an economic boom. But the quarter-century reign of his son, George II, was weak and destabilizing. Although good at solving logistical problems, he was not a politician and many mass upheavals followed, especially in Aziria. In fact, an Aziri rebel terrorist cell had created so much chaos that they even managed to assassinate George, Prince Imperial, grandson of George II and second-in-line for the throne. Eventually, George II would die and be succeeded by his only son George III, who avenged his son's assassination and brought down a hammer upon the dissenters in and around the empire. Under his rule America recovered from such chaos, albeit slowly. Near the very end of his reign, George III went to war alongside his distant cousin, Nicholas II, Proman Emperor, to put the final nail on the proverbial coffin of their rivals, the House of Spheorza, who, alongside their allies, had been attempting to depose lesser Macillium monarchs in the east. They failed, and George III and his cousins reigned supreme. He was however dissuaded by his grandson and heir, George-Bruce, to be lenient with the Spheorzas, desiring peace with them instead, much to the objections of Nicholas II. Unfortunately, he would die before doing so of old age, and be subsequently replaced by Georg-Bruce, who became Emperor George IV Bruce. This George would see the arguable height of his era, with a brief renaissance of culture ensuing and a final peace to the centuries-long feud with the House of Spheorza. America was surely on the rise once again, nearly enjoying as much power as during the reign of Nicholas, but this growth was halted with a fatal injury befalling the emperor and strong, and in some cases, armed protests in the eastern territories, particularly in Panthrand. With difficulty, he managed to escape death's embrace, and aided by his son's counsel, he secured a peaceful end to the protests. Nonetheless, he, much like John II, thought himself too unfit to rule any longer due to his injuries and abdicated in favor of eldest child, William. The Williamite Era Following his father's abdication, William ascends as Emperor and proceeds to annex Urmania, the first physical expansion of the empire's borders since the annexation of Florrulium. A matter of weeks latter a series of dynastic disputes between the western Macilliums and the eastern Macilliums, headed by Nicholas III of Proma. These disputes were further precipitated when the Spheorzas were thrown in the mix, putting America's newfound ally at risk. Eventually, war ensued In a large, shock-and-awe campaign, the Promans led consecutive invasions of America's eastern allies and ran them all to the ground. In retaliation, William led a massive invasion of his own unto Proma's largest ally, Gordaynia, and did force its surrender in two weeks, a feat that had been tried for centuries in the past, all in 3909. A few months later, another Macillium monarch joined the fray; Frederick II of Ayggiya, who had led his empire into the height its power, wished to further display his strength by attacking the empires of his cousins, which earned the war's historical name, the War of the Three Emperors. Vastly outnumbered and the odds stack, William nonetheless won. He forced the Promans to surrender whereas Nicholas was deposed; as for in Ayggiya, Frederick II was not deposed, but his empire lost all its territorial gains it had made in the last two centuries. William would continue to rule well for over ninety years, seeing America gain more territory than ever before, ruling a third of the known galaxy and beginning America's Golden Age. He also oversaw a massive upswing in the economy throughout his reign and a reintroduction of another renaissance. At the age 116, he abdicated willingly to retire from political life and was replaced by son, William II. William II was not as healthy as his father, and after three short, unproductive years, he falls ill and dies. He in turn is replaced by his grandson who becomes William III. The Dowager Emperor William I returns briefly from his retirement to train the young monarch in the ways of ruling, before he also dies. William III is just as fantastic at reigning as his great-grandfather and would later expand the empire till it encompassed over half of the known galaxy. Unlike his elderly predecessor, this William is significantly more progressive and he loosens the reins he and his government holds, allowing more freedom for his people. After sixty years of rule, he died peaceful and then was interred at his personal mausoleum on his home world. His elder son became William IV and continued the Williamite past time of expansionism. Like his father, William IV was rather progressive and made sure to respect all species and cultures within his empire, so much so he purposefully learned thirty other languages commonly spoken in the empire as better his relations with the people and their leaders. Although he had the potential for a long lasting rule, his life was cut short, whereas the throne fell to his strapping son, who became William V. William V was conversely more conservative than his father and grandfather, but was significantly more nationalistic and imperialistic. He committed to propaganda of pan-galactic unity under one ruler, encouraging his people to support further territorial expansion. In a series of final wars, He conquered a handful of the final free worlds, and following that demanded the submission of the others (including Ayggiya) to American suzerainty. They bent the knee, and at the capital of the Galactic Union six years into his reign, William was crowned Grand Emperor of the Galaxy by the then-President, becoming the second and only other man to do so. He would reign over the galaxy peacefully and impressively fairly for a quarter of a century. Upon his death, the eldest of his seventeen sons was prepared to be crowned Alexander VI, but was stopped by his brothers who wanted to rule themselves. The once united galaxy was divided into seventeen spheres as they warred with each other to claim the throne. Few worlds escaped the battlefield. After a decade of fighting and a lot of spilled blood, uprisings rose up in rebellion led by the submissed Empire of Ayggiya, all the while a republican revolution began in the heartland of the divided empire. Not wanting any bloodshed even though he was the last brother standing, Alexander went into self imposed exile. The First Empire, splintered and leaderless, was overrun and dissolved, its like never seen again for another thousand years.